Horrific scene at London Bridge… bodies strewn over the pavement. B&Q van mounted the pavement. I feel sick
Reports are coming coming in of “bodies everywhere” after a car drove into a crowd on London Bridge, mirroring the March 25 Islamic State attack on Westminster Bridge. According to BBC, the car was a white van driven by a male driver and was going at least 50 MPH.
Fatalities have been reported.
The attack seems to be part of a coordinated attack numbering two in total now. A third stabbing reported in Vauxhall appears to be unrelated according to Metropolitan police. Prime Minister Theresa May said has confirmed the attacks as terrorism.
More than one dead at London Bridge, police say, amid reports of stabbings in Borough and incident in Vauxhall t.co/Dtp4IubDPi
About the initial attack, a witness named Mark Roberts told CNN, “The van hit several people, knocking one person about 20 feet into the air. It swerved into oncoming lanes before hitting a bus stop and coming to a stop. Within my line of sight, there were five or six people on the ground that were not moving.”
Gunshots were also reported following the ramming.
Witness: “There was tremendous gunfire”, “significant gunfire.” #London #LondonBridge
A second incident at Borough Market has also been reported. According to The Independent, armed police are on scene. Guardian reporter Lisa O’Carroll writes:
Witnesses said they saw two men stabbing people outside the well-known Roast restaurant in Borough market. A chef from the nearby Fish restaurant said: “I saw two guys with big knives downstairs outside Roast. They were stabbing people. The police were running away, they were community police. They were normal officers, they were running away. “The guy with the knife was killing two people. We were shouting ‘stop, stop’ and people threw chairs at them. Police came and shot straight away.”
Following the ramming, London Bridge has been shutdown. A man was seen nearby being handcuffed by police, reports the BBC.
The ramming comes just over a month after the Westminster Bridge attack that sent Britain’s Parliament into lockdown. During that attack, a man stabbed and killed an officer and was then shot and killed by police. Prior to being shot, the man drove a vehicle into pedestrians on nearby Westminster Bridge. 3 people died, including an American, Kurt Cochran.
The attack was carried out by a 52-year-old British-born man with a violent criminal record named Khalid Masood, born Adrian Elms.
Masood was an ISIS supporter. ISIS claimed him as a “soldier” to their cause.
#LondonBridge RT @WillHeaven Passerby says 15-20 people have been run over. “Westminster bridge all over again”. Another says 7 or 8.
Earlier today, ISIS channels urged ISIS sympathizers to run over civilians.
3)Earlier today, pro #ISIS channel urged to kill civilians: “Run over them by vehicles” w/ image of truck, gun&knife t.co/Dx3tMZQGqZ
The news of the London attacks is spreading over ISIS channels.
Breaking news re incident in #London has been spreading on key Islamic State-linked Telegram channels (no claim has been issued by IS)
It’s currently unconfirmed if today’s attack was orchestrated or inspired by the Islamic State, but it carries ISIS hallmarks. In an ISIS magazine article from November 2016, ISIS suggested to jihadists how to carry out a successful attack as a lone wolf operative. In the article, ISIS said that a lone wolf should use a vehicle to plow into a crowd and to carry a secondary weapon.
Soon after, an ISIS-inspired student carried out vehicular attack on Ohio State University. The perpetrator, Somali-born Abdul Razak Ali Artan, also carried a machete. ISIS later claimed the attacked and named Artan as one of their “soldiers.”
A similar attack claimed by ISIS was carried out on July 14, 2016 at a Bastille Day celebration in Nice, France by Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel. Bouhlel is responsible for murdering up to 84 people by ramming into them with a truck and shooting at them.
A similar ISIS attack took place at a Christmas market attack that killed 12 and injured 48 at Breitscheidplatz in Berlin-Charlottenburg, Germany in late 2016.
This is a developing story.